Tostadita Recipes

Crispy fried tacos are traditionally made with deep-fried tortillas, but since I received a humongous package from our friends at California Lavash, I prepared the tacos with lavash flatbread and they turned out beautifully. I also used the same oil for the tacos for deep fried catfish sticks. I filled the tacos with brown rice, roasted red pepper and eggplant spread, fried fish, red oak leaves, Mexican crema and curly parsley.

These do take a little of time to prepare but the result is well worth the labor. As appetizers, they're especially great if you're preparing them for a small crowd. I'm sure your guests will love these mix-and-mingle party bites.

Tostadas are deep-fried corn tortillas presented in the form of a flat, open-faced sandwich. I made a slightly smaller version for appetizers, called tostaditas. You can fill them with anything you like; I played with different textures and flavors, and settled on something Lulu had while we were on vacation in Cancun. I added grilled nopales (segments from prickly pears), corn and tomato salsa and topped the appetizers with mini red kidney bean burgers, crumbled queso fresco and Mexican sour cream both from our friends over at Karoun Cheese.

I love the fact that you could eat these in one-to-two bites. You can feel both the freshness and spiciness from the vegetables and the warmth and crunch from the tostada. I served them with little wedges of sweet limes from our garden to cut the heaviness of the cheese and sour cream. It's pure piece of heaven for the mouth. Enjoy!